Arts Theatre – until 4 January 2026
Reviewed by Claire Roderick
5*****
Choir of Man celebrates 4 years in the West End as an exciting new cast takes over the barstools, ensuring the fun continues into 2026. The show is an uplifting and celebratory delight, full of nostalgia and joy.
With a functioning bar on stage to serve preshow beers (and some during the performance if you are lucky), The Arts Theatre is the perfect venue to turn into The Jungle pub, with its wonky, sometimes sticky, flooring and ancient seats always giving charming giant pub theatre vibes. The concept is simple – 9 men singing in a pub with monologues in between each musical number. But the song choices (from Adele and Sia to Queen via the Red Hot Chili Peppers) and Ben Norris’s writing gives the show a huge heart. Perfectly capturing the camaraderie, earned trust, honesty and occasional idiocy of a group of male friends, the show touches on loss, relationships, men’s mental health and community with Paul McArthur’s poet linking songs and introducing the pub regulars with heartfelt and funny words. Celebrating the community and shelter of pubs and mourning the loss of those amazing places where 90-year-olds and teenagers mix and share shaggy dog stories with a bar food menu that runs to peanuts and crisps, the audience cannot help but be caught up in the sense of belonging and togetherness emanating from the stage.
The cast all play instruments throughout the show, accompanying the amazing band above the bar – Jacob Evans, Jack Hartigan, Darius Luke Thompson and Sam Tookey. Everyone onstage is introduced as stereotypes: the Beast, the Bore, the Handyman, but each has a musical number to shine and let their character break through. The section about what home means to different people gives McArthur a chance to introduce each cast member by name and share a little something about their lives and manages to be melancholy and uplifting at the same time. Jack Blume’s musical arrangements are phenomenal, and Freddie Huddleston’s choreography is still seamless. The cast’s voices are all gorgeous, and blend beautifully. Paul McArthur marshals the action with a gentle mateyness while Levi Tyrell Johnson rocks as the Hard Man, Ifan Gwilym-Jones shines as the Maestro, Ben Goffe dances with abandon as the Handyman, Jason Brock sings his heart out as the Romantic, Oliver Jacobson is a wonderfully warm Barman, Aled Pennock is a sweet and cuddly Bore, Cal T King is a sweet and funny Beast and Benji Lord has a ball as the Joker. The Choir of Man family has strength in depth, and the company swings are incredibly talented. On gala night, Alex Mallalieu played the Maestro with hilarious Gallic flair – the tantrum is even funnier in French – and if you ever get the chance to see Sam Ebenezer, Tom Carter-Miles and David Shute (all former main cast members), you are in for a treat. Whoever is performing, the camaraderie and joy that fills the auditorium makes for an unforgettable show.
If you don’t get the chance to see the show in London, don’t despair, the Choir of Man tours the UK in 2026!